Melissa Pronovost has a brother who is autistic, so she feels a sort of bond with facilities like Farmington Community Living Centers.

That’s why Pronovost, a staffer with Mercedes-Benz Financial Services in Farmington Hills, was at the CLC facility on Greening Street, painting walls and helping with flooring and other projects as part of Mercedes-Benz’s third annual Week of Caring.

“My brother is autistic, so I can relate to what (mentally challenged adults) need,” Pronovost said. “(Week of Caring) is just a chance to give back, to help.”

Chance to help

Week of Caring is a week-long community service campaign the auto dealer’s financial services branch has oranized the last three years as part of its corporate commitment to making a difference in the communities where its team members live and work.

The Week of Caring involves some 1,100 Mercedes-Benz employees (including some 500 in the metro Detroit area) working with 23 non-profit organizations on more than 40 different projects in metro Detroit and in the Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas, area.

In addition to CLC, some of the other groups include the 8 Mile Boulevard Association in Ferndale, Forgotten Harvest, Habitat for Humanity and several others.

Hard work

“Being a good corporate citizen aligns with our corporate core values,” said Mercedes-Benz spokesperson Melinda Mernovage. “For us, doing this is more than just sponsoring non-profits. It’s getting our employees engaged and excited about being involved.”

At the Farmington CLC, volunteers tore up long-sitting carpeting, which took the effort of jack-hammers to get up, and laid some 1,200 square feet of interlocking tile.

Volunteers painted an estimated 2,000 square feet of walls, and Mercedes-Benz paid for professional painters to do the center’s vaulted ceiling.

Loving atmosphere

Debra Hemmye, CLC’s marketing director, said the work never would have gotten done without Mercedes-Benz’s help.

“(The work) doesn’t get done without them,” Hemmye said of the dealer. “It’s all we can do to pay our staff and buy medicine and things like that. Stuff like this just doesn’t get done.”

Executive Director Lisa Murrell pointed out the facility specializes in elderly care, and that some of the residents have been there for decades. She said work like this is essential to making the residents feel at home.

“For most of them, this is their home, and we are their family,” Murrell said. “It gives them a warm, loving atmosphere to live in that we never could have given them.”